Smith said Rose knew that the children of Margie and Christopher Shaver were being neglected and did nothing about it.

Lt. Michael Hildebrand Hildebrand said, "There were some reports that the children had insect bites and also there were some reports of roaches found in the children's belongings and so those were the neglect type of reports that were being made that were never forwarded to law enforcement."

The Shavers were arrested in March after their 2-year-old son was crushed to death under a dresser.

Chandler Jerome Shaver was playing with his sister in a bedroom when the five-drawer, wooden chest of drawers fell on top of the children, according to Lt. Michael Hildebrand.

Chandler died. His sister was treated for her injuries and was placed into the care of the South Carolina Department of Social Services

A release from the Sheriff's Office said Margie Shaver had locked her children in a filthy, unsafe bedroom and did not supervise them.

The arrest warrants said that the home was "infested with roaches and rodents" and the carpeting was heavily soiled with animal urine and feces.

Master Deputy Laura Campbell said there was "insect infestation, animal feces, and waste throughout the home, excessive trash, food, dishes. The bottom line is the house was deplorable for an adult to live in, let alone a 2- and 4-year-old child."

The investigation found that the chest of drawers falling on the children made a loud noise that Shaver heard, but she did nothing to save the life of her child.

Margie Shaver is charged with homicide by child abuse. She and her husband are both also charged with neglect. Deputies said Christopher Shaver was not at home was his son was killed.

Investigators said they backtracked from the time of the child's death and determined that Rose was aware of physical abuse of the children and did not report it to the Department of Social Services or law enforcement.

Hildebrand said if the Sheriff's Office had known about the issues sooner, they would have investigated.

"I hate to play 'what if,'" he said, "But I know in this case, this particular investigation started as a result of a child death."

Copyright 2013 byWYFF All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.